Welding machine question

[greygoose]

I think I'm going to give welding a try.I've seen a welder a harbor freight that doesn't use gas which is right up my alley lol. It's around a 100 bucks,other that working on my truck I won't be doing that much with it.Would it work for putting in cab panel and rockers and some other patch work that I want to do?

[hdflstf]

Originally Posted by greygoose

I think I'm going to give welding a try.I've seen a welder a harbor freight that doesn't use gas which is right up my alley lol. It's around a 100 bucks,other that working on my truck I won't be doing that much with it.Would it work for putting in cab panel and rockers and some other patch work that I want to do?

You'll be much better off with a Mig with a gas bottle. You'll need the finer control to weld the this sheet metal without burning holes through it.

Find a welding class at your local community college. Glad I did.

[robin58]

I'm sure many have had success with HF welders. I wish I could say the same. I went through 3 before I learned my lesson. Buy a quality welder and you'll find it tons easier than battling with that gasless HF unit. Home Depot/Lowes usually have decent prices on smaller Lincolns. You can find Hobarts relatively cheap in catalogs. Or the lowest Miller isn't really that expensive. There are just too many reasons to buy a good unit: duty cycle, wirefeed motor quality, adjustability.

[hounddogs!]

Originally Posted by robin58

There are just too many reasons to buy a good unit: duty cycle, wirefeed motor quality, adjustability.

+1. If the budget doesn't permit right now, I'd still say be patient and wait until you can afford the name brand unit with a bottle. Life's too short to buy inferior tools.

[Tom Vogel]

Originally Posted by hdflstf

You'll be much better off with a Mig with a gas bottle. You'll need the finer control to weld the this sheet metal without burning holes through it.

Find a welding class at your local community college. Glad I did.

TRUER words were never spoken. Take this mans advice, word for word. Trust us on this, youll be glad you did. Also... pass on the Harbor freight welder... seriously... wait till you learn a little at the local community college... then spend your money on a used Miller.

[greygoose]

Thanks guys,for the help.And through trial and error,I've learned to listen.So since I don't have a garage and it's still a little cold,I'll look into the welding class first,it never hurts to have something else under your belt....Again guys thanks for your help.

[MXmaniac]

I would look for a nice used name-brand welder. And I recommend the bottle too. I used flux-core wire before I bought a bottle of C02/Argon mix and I'll never go back! I got a used Lincoln Electric 155 for a few hundred dollars, its well worth the money.

[Ace in the hole]

Flux core is great for some things but not auto body metal. I'm with the others, get a good welder the first time and you will save yourself a lot of trouble.

[phipp13]

Hey guys, phipp13 here. I've been a certifyied Govt Aircraft Welder, Fabricator& Sheetmetal Mech for over 18 years now with too many certs to list. I feel halfway qualifyied to put my 2 cents in.I've done many NHRA & IHRA certifyied chassis. For auto body, frames & Mild Steel roll cages i use my old 110v Lincoln SP100. with solid core .023 mig wire with 75%25% argon CO2 mixed gas. The reason why i use . 023 wire is you can get 100% penetration thru the metal without burning it up & warping it. that setup cost me less than 400 bucks 20 yrs ago. IMHO your best bet is to buy a 110V brand name mig welder 220 if you can afford it. Gas is a must! especially if your not an expert welder. the gas makes it so much easier. Also the .023 wire for frames seems light But if you weave the weld you get awsome penetration and you won't start off with a cold blob. "THE BIGGER THE BLOB THE BETTER THE JOB" does not apply here.LOL! If there are any welding questions i can help a fellow Bowtie Brother with, Please feel free to pm me and i'll even call you (USA ONLY) and discuss this with you. RESPECTFULLY Phipp13

[MrBeast]

Originally Posted by phipp13

Hey guys, phipp13 here. I've been a certifyied Govt Aircraft Welder, Fabricator& Sheetmetal Mech for over 18 years now with too many certs to list. I feel halfway qualifyied to put my 2 cents in.I've done many NHRA & IHRA certifyied chassis. For auto body, frames & Mild Steel roll cages i use my old 110v Lincoln SP100. with solid core .023 mig wire with 75%25% argon CO2 mixed gas. The reason why i use . 023 wire is you can get 100% penetration thru the metal without burning it up & warping it. that setup cost me less than 400 bucks 20 yrs ago. IMHO your best bet is to buy a 110V brand name mig welder 220 if you can afford it. Gas is a must! especially if your not an expert welder. the gas makes it so much easier. Also the .023 wire for frames seems light But if you weave the weld you get awsome penetration and you won't start off with a cold blob. "THE BIGGER THE BLOB THE BETTER THE JOB" does not apply here.LOL! If there are any welding questions i can help a fellow Bowtie Brother with, Please feel free to pm me and i'll even call you (USA ONLY) and discuss this with you. RESPECTFULLY Phipp13

+1 I have been to school for welding, and if you need any convincing of weather or not I know my stuff, check out either of my build threads.

Your best bet is going to be to run a solid core wire, and 75/25

I have 3 recommendations for you.

1. Miller matic 140

the miller matic 140 is a good machine, it is 115 volt, so you can plug it in to most wall sockets, and it is suited for doing sheet metal, and smaller welding jobs, it has a relatively low duty cycle, so you cant run the snot out of it, but if you need to weld it will do the job. I just wouldn't count on it to weld thicker material, especially something like a frame. it is just a little light duty for my personal preference.

2. Millermatic 180

The Millermatic 180 is also a good machine, it is the next step up from the 140, and it is a 230V welder. This machine will do about anything you need to when it comes to restoring a truck, it is still a fairly light duty welder though, and is limited by its duty cycle. I wouldnt plan on burning .250" plate with it all day, but it will get small jobs done mighty fine.

3. Millermatic 212

Then we have the millermatic 212, This is the machine that I run, In my oppinion it is the best shop welder you can get short of getting an industrial welder. It runs clean and smooth, and all around it is just a great weld squirter. I really have zero complaints with it, but it was also 1900.00 out the door by the time I got all the goodies I got with it like the bottle, and so on and so forth.

Also I will say I have welded with the harbor freight welder, my machine shop instructor bought on, he got kind of mad when I tested it out and offered him my opinion on it because I told him his best bet was to sell it for scrap and put the money towards a good miller or Lincoln.

And just a final note, a welding machine is a long term investment, when I first learned how to weld it was on my grandfathers 1930's model Lincoln welder, it was a DC only SMAW buzz box, and he had had the thing since he came back from world war II. A welding machine is something you can keep for years and years and years, and if you take care of it, it will serve you well.

I currently have 3 welders, the aforementioned Millermatic 212, as well as a Miller Syncrowave 200 TIG, and a Lincoln Ranger GXT 250, All great machines, all investments that I am very happy with.

[cdowns]

go to your local welding supply store make friends ask questions theres alot of free knowledge available//sometimes a manufacture will have classes or seminars to teach people about thier products//

[hotrod 80]

All the above suggestion are in line with mine . I would shop Craigslist for a used 115V machine . I have a used Craftsman ( made by lincon so parts are avalible at Lowes or sears ) and i run .030 flux core . I did all the body work and sheet metal replacement on my truck with it and i find it easy to use and make nice welds with . I took the truck to the race car shop the other day to have some frame mods done and they were asking me about the welds . I told them they were flux core and that i only had 1 receptcle in my whole garage and that was my only choice . They said i was the flux core master and had never seen flux core welds that nice . It can be done with flux core . I also don't have a shop to work in so most of my work is in the driveway in the wind . I would agree 75/25 solid core is easier to weld with , but flux core also works well once you get the hang of it .

[Larry S]

Hey man. Ive welded for over 20 yrs and have mainly done very heavy duty stick and mig. I came across a lincoln 3200 hd at a local home depot, that someone had returned. They kept the facemask and all of the wire that comes with it, So I offered them $325 and got it. It is a 110 volt and I am running .025 wire and the 75 argon/ 25 co2 and for welding small stuff I couldnt be happier. I bought one of those harbor freight welders at a estate sale one time for next to nothing and ended up scrapping it. Go with a good name. Miller or lincoln. You wont regret it!

[bigsnookmaster]

I got a Miller Vintage 250 at a pawnshop a few years back for $475 with the flowmeter and bottle. I got lucky,but the deals are out there,and unfortunately with todays economy,they will be for a while. Buy a quality machine,and you will never regret it.